- Report: #257229
Complaint Review: West Telemarketing - San Antonio Texas
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West Telemarketing
111330 IH 10 West Woodway Parkway San Antonio, Texas, U.S.A.
Phone:
877-729-2245
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West Telemarketing Independent Contractor vs employee conversion Ripoff San Antonio Texas
Notified on June 25, 2007, of "employee conversion" versus Independent Contractor. Very little explanation of action provided by West Telemarketing. No option to continue as a IC but mandatory to become an employee of West. No benefits provided by the company for days off or insurance. Question of what is gained by "employee conversion" vs Independent Contractors for ICs. West has stated not to use their company as a reference on a resume. To pay our own taxes and to maintain and update equipment for usage. No policy manual has replaced previous manual as of June 27, 2007, nor has a rountable discussion with ICs been scheduled. See following letter:
To WAHA Contractors,
We would like to announce a very exciting opportunity.
During the next several weeks, West Telemarketing, LP will provide home-based Independent Contractors with information regarding the opportunity to become employees of West at Home, LLC (West At Home). West Telemarketing, LP will no longer be using home-based Independent Contractors.
The West At Home Program will continue to offer great schedule flexibility and versatility. Call processing will continue to function as it does today and employees will still be able to work from home on existing certifications. You will receive additional information and direction as we work towards completing the transition process.
We will notify you as more information is available. Until then, it is business as usual in your Independent Contractor role.
On behalf of West At Home, we look forward to working with you.
Sincerely,
West At Home, LLC, West Telemarketing, LP
Pay Scale
Question: How will pay be calculated?
Answer: West will continue to offer schedules at either a Per Minute, Per Call, or Guaranteed Hourly Rate. If total earnings (from per minute, per call, and/or guaranteed hourly rate) are less than minimum wage, the employee's compensation will be adjusted to meet their local minimum wage requirements on a weekly basis.
Employee Conversion-Start Date
Question: Do I have to be an employee?
Answer: To continue a work from home relationship with West you would need to complete the steps outlined in the email communication and convert to Employee.
Vacation/Paid Time Off/Insurance
Question: Will I be entitled to Benefits?
Answer: The WestAtHome Employee opportunity is a convenient way to earn additional income right from your home through inbound call processing; however, West will not offer benefits such as insurance or paid time off. WestAtHome Employees will have access to a Policy Manual for further reference.
Certifications-Convert
Question: Will the current Contractor Certifications be transferred over with the Employee Conversion?
Answer: The first phased group will temporarily have only one Certification converted and all other active Certifications will be set to a disabled status; again- this is temporary. The second phased group will have all Certifications converted immediately. West will communicate via email to each group
accordingly. Please note the following verbiage change ~ our communication/websites etc. will now state
Skill versus Certification.
Independent Contractor vs. Employee
Question: What is the difference between an Independent Contractor and Employee?
Answer: The Independent Contractor is an individual, business, or corporation, which provides goods or services to another entity under the terms specified in a contract. Unlike an employee, an Independent Contractor does not work regularly for an employer but works when required.
Specifically, an employee is an individual hired by an employer to do a specific job. Typically the term employee refers to a specific defined relationship between an individual and a corporation, which differs from those of a customer or client.
Meetings - Change to Work Location?
Question: Will I ever be required to go to a West location during my employment at home?
Answer: No, this opportunity will continue to exist from the privacy and comfort of your home!
Sharon
Belcourt, North Dakota
U.S.A.
Click here to read other Rip Off Reports on West Telemarketing/West Teleservices
To WAHA Contractors,
We would like to announce a very exciting opportunity.
During the next several weeks, West Telemarketing, LP will provide home-based Independent Contractors with information regarding the opportunity to become employees of West at Home, LLC (West At Home). West Telemarketing, LP will no longer be using home-based Independent Contractors.
The West At Home Program will continue to offer great schedule flexibility and versatility. Call processing will continue to function as it does today and employees will still be able to work from home on existing certifications. You will receive additional information and direction as we work towards completing the transition process.
We will notify you as more information is available. Until then, it is business as usual in your Independent Contractor role.
On behalf of West At Home, we look forward to working with you.
Sincerely,
West At Home, LLC, West Telemarketing, LP
Pay Scale
Question: How will pay be calculated?
Answer: West will continue to offer schedules at either a Per Minute, Per Call, or Guaranteed Hourly Rate. If total earnings (from per minute, per call, and/or guaranteed hourly rate) are less than minimum wage, the employee's compensation will be adjusted to meet their local minimum wage requirements on a weekly basis.
Employee Conversion-Start Date
Question: Do I have to be an employee?
Answer: To continue a work from home relationship with West you would need to complete the steps outlined in the email communication and convert to Employee.
Vacation/Paid Time Off/Insurance
Question: Will I be entitled to Benefits?
Answer: The WestAtHome Employee opportunity is a convenient way to earn additional income right from your home through inbound call processing; however, West will not offer benefits such as insurance or paid time off. WestAtHome Employees will have access to a Policy Manual for further reference.
Certifications-Convert
Question: Will the current Contractor Certifications be transferred over with the Employee Conversion?
Answer: The first phased group will temporarily have only one Certification converted and all other active Certifications will be set to a disabled status; again- this is temporary. The second phased group will have all Certifications converted immediately. West will communicate via email to each group
accordingly. Please note the following verbiage change ~ our communication/websites etc. will now state
Skill versus Certification.
Independent Contractor vs. Employee
Question: What is the difference between an Independent Contractor and Employee?
Answer: The Independent Contractor is an individual, business, or corporation, which provides goods or services to another entity under the terms specified in a contract. Unlike an employee, an Independent Contractor does not work regularly for an employer but works when required.
Specifically, an employee is an individual hired by an employer to do a specific job. Typically the term employee refers to a specific defined relationship between an individual and a corporation, which differs from those of a customer or client.
Meetings - Change to Work Location?
Question: Will I ever be required to go to a West location during my employment at home?
Answer: No, this opportunity will continue to exist from the privacy and comfort of your home!
Sharon
Belcourt, North Dakota
U.S.A.
Click here to read other Rip Off Reports on West Telemarketing/West Teleservices
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Sunny
Granbury,Texas,
U.S.A.
West IC vs West Employee
#2UPDATE Employee
Mon, March 24, 2008
I've worked for West since 10/05 as both I(ndependent) C(ontractor) and work at home employee. I can honestly say that the work at home employee experience has been the superior of the two. I began with West as an IC working the OD project and later certified for the DR project. All training time was unpaid and an IC was paid wages only for active call handling. For example, an IC is scheduled for a 2 hour shift and handles calls for 35 minutes of that shift with 1 hour and 25 minutes of inactivity. The OD project paid .20 cents a minute and DR pays .17 per minute. If working the OD project the IC would be compensated with $7.00 for 2 hours of work. If working the DR project the IC would be compensated with $5.95 for 2 hours of work. Now as an employee an agent is guaranteed their state's federal minimum wage per hour whether or not the agent is actively processing calls. so in the same situation of 2 hour shift with 35 minutes of call handling an agent in Texas will be paid $11.70. Hopefully this scenario explains why work at home employee is superior to IC. In case the previous scenario han't convinced you let me give another example. Agents must train for the different projects and as an IC the training period is uncompensated. My current project, which is VERY lucrative, has about a 40 hour training period. I trained as an IC and received no paid compensation for my 40 hour effort. After the employee conversion agents now receive 40 hours at minimum wage. So in Texas an agent receives $234.00 before tax for training on this project. As opposed to the $00.00 I received for training on this project. I had in fact complained in May 2008 about the extensive and time consuming training which was neccessary for the skill and the fact that training time was uncompensated. The scam was the bestowal of the title IC on work at home customer agents. I thought the conversion was probably to make sure that agents are authorized to work in the US and that many ICs were failing to pay federal income tax. After finding many websites talking about employers bestowing the title of Independent Contractors on their employees to avoid providing benefits and filing taxes for their employees I now understand why West made the conversion: to avoid a lawsuit. As far as customer service goes, customers tell me I'm the nicest and most knowledgable agent who has assisted them. Work at home agents is the future of call centers. Consumers complain when their calls are handled by agents outside of the US not because they care about saving American jobs but because when they want customer service they want an agent who speaks their language and understands the workings of the US. The future of call centers is Virtual and the consumer will be better assisted and by far happier. PS~next time I'll tell you about what sort of company you are supporting every time you pay for cheap junk at Wal~Mart. Not just the way they mistreat employees but how Wal~Mart mindlessly consumes and throws out fixtures, merchandise, and other horror stories. Also, how they are trying to destroy the last vestiges of organized labor in California and Wal~Mart's active efforts to put their competition out of business with merchandise produced by the Third World. Until then, Ciao! Amirah
